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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rash — a series
  4. pop — music
  5. rash — hasty
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. pop — to visit
  12. firm — a company
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. firm — decided
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. snap — to click
  18. squash — the sport
  19. band — a ring
  20. pop — soda
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. band — a music group
  24. squash — to crush

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com